Far Horizons: Tales of Sci-Fi, Fantasy and Horror. Issue #13 April 2015 | Page 18

home, however it is often unable to do so, especially
when it then becomes trapped by programming loops.
Inadequate disinfection, dirt hygenisation, and dirt
build-up
Unlike later models which feature rubberized rollers,
the rollers of the iRobot® Roomba 500 series are
made with bristles which catch and retain dirt. Additionally, the rollers tend to catch and roll up great
quantities of human hair, carpet liner, etc., which over
time impede motion and drain battery energy leading,
in turn, to more stranding incidents which must be
avoided at all costs.
Of even greater concern, however, is the lack of
on-board disinfection facilities. Even far cheaper
and otherwise inferior robovac models feature UV
sterilisation – that is, small LED bulbs internal to the
unit which emit ultraviolet light in doses sufficient to
kill most germs, parasite eggs and insect larvae. The
iRobot® Roomba 500 series lacks this feature, which
leads to the disturbing possibility of cross-contamination with all of these infectious agents during the extensive cleansing, de-tangling and disinfection service
which must be performed on the unit at the very least
once a week.
Infectious agents tracked into the home, along with
unsanitary items such as dog faeces and human vomit,
are then taken up by the iRobot® Roomba 500 series
during the completion of its daily cleansing activities
and spread around the home, completely undisinfected
and threatening householders with major outbreaks of
various vomiting sickness, norovirus, human parasite
infections, tick bites, and, for those who are aware of
these severe design defects, Munchausens’ syndrome,
Munchausens’ syndrome by proxy, cleansing psychosis and delusional parasitosis.
A small, blue light bulb mounted on the inside of the
unit would go a long way to quell householder fears
of cross-infection and reduce, if not eliminate entirely,
the associated psychological problems. The light does
not actually need to emit ultraviolet light, unless this
is cost efficient.
Inappropriate storage locations

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Recently, footage has emerged on the Internet of
a robovac (not an iRobot® model) being stored /
charged in a toilet. Owners and other Company ambassadors must be reminded that this is not an appropriate storage location for your iRobot® Roomba 500
series, due to
1)
Risk of the unit tracking human faeces particles through the entire house, and
2)
The need to keep the bathroom door open for
the duration of the cleansing operation, which would
in turn lead to further contamination of the home with
faeces particles, urine droplets, potential airborne
infectious agents / contaminants as well as unsanitary
and unpleasant bathroom odour contamination of potentially the entire property.
Other inappropriate storage locations for your iRobot® Roomba 500 series include
1)
Inside storage closets / cupboards
2)
Underneath household tables / chairs
3)
Underneath beds, wardrobes, and other heavy
furniture items.
4)
Kitchens and bathrooms (as opposed to W.C.
Toilets) as doors to these must be kept closed at all
times to prevent cross-contamination, odour spreading
and household damp, as well as personal embarrassment and inconvenience for bathroom users.
While this is not a robot design flaw per se, it is hoped
that in the future, homes will be built with internal
swing doors or electrically operated doors to improve
household “robo-friendliness” and eliminate for good
the problem of having to keep open internal doors
during robot operation (the “open door problem”).
Inadequate cleansing capabilities
In addition to inadequate disinfection capability, the
iRobot® Roomba 500 series suffers from extremely
limited cleansing capability. To give but two examples – chewing gum and congealed human bodily
fluids pass beneath the unit completely undisturbed,
especially in the case of dried blood / bloodstains. A
simple ultrasonic attachment would entirely take care
of the latter problem, while a small, refillable canister